Synopsis/blurb...
As Steve Regan goes deep undercover, he starts to have problems separating reality from fiction.
Working as an undercover cop, he operates in a world of duplicity. In order to stay alive, he often thinks, How do I know people are who they say they are?
Tempted by the riches of drug smuggling so he can help a loved one, Regan wonders whether he can go 'rogue' and cross the line.
Regan infiltrates a South American cartel headed up by a Miami-based Mob-connected drug lord, and getting involved in a million-dollar cocaine deal escalates the dangers of working undercover.
On his return to the United Kingdom from Miami, Regan discovers a plot to kill a leading barrister. Is this linked to the Mob and drug cartel?
Faced with a race against time through London to prevent the barrister’s murder, Regan is confronted by more questions and threats to his life. Just how far will the Mob go to protect its interests?
You will be shocked to discover the measures these gangsters will use to stay free and out of jail.
Based on a true story and inspired by the author’s real-life undercover days and bestselling memoir, his debut crime fiction story brings to life Steve Regan, a laid-back badass British undercover cop in the Steve Regan Undercover Cop Thriller series.
The title of the book is a nod to identity confusion often experienced by cops who are deep undercover.
If you like hard-boiled crime fiction or are a Jack Reacher fan, this book is for you. Original-concept crime fiction about an undercover cop written by a former undercover cop!
Discounting the prequel, The Secret, Who the F*ck Am I? is the first in Bentley's Steve Regan undercover cop series. I've read two and three in the series - Dilemma and Rivers of Blood and they were much better than this. I think if I had come to this one first, I doubt I would have read anything more by the author afterwards.
I may be in a minority and at the end of the day it's only one man's opinion. (44 reviews on Amazon UK, give an average score of 4.3/5 with more than half of the reviews a 5 star rating.) I found the plot weak, the way the story unfolded confusing, the dialogue stilted and the characters cardboard cut-outs. Apart from that, it was amazing.
Who the F*ck Am I? soon morphed into WHY THE F*CK DID I BOTHER?
Drugs, cops, criminals, shady lawyers, undercover work, secrets, conspiracies.... all ingredients I like in my reading - just blended together a bit amateurishly.
Bizarrely maybe because of my dislike of this one, I read another Audible book by the same author immediately after this and did actually enjoy it a lot more. I think there's an obvious improvement in the quality of Bentley's work the more books he writes. 
Sorry, but...
2 stars from 5
Read - (listened to) February, 2022
Published - 2017
Page count - 176 (4 hrs 24 mins)
Source - Audiobooks.com freebie
Format - Audible
Sorry to hear that this one didn't do it for you, Col. As I was reading the blurb, it did sound like something you'd enjoy, but it doesn't always work out that way, does it? It's an interesting concept for a story, though, and I'm glad you found the other Pasquellas you read to be more to your liking.
ReplyDeleteMargot, you win some, you lose some!
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